Kamen Rider Shinryu
by Dragon Seraphim
Summary: Demons. They walk among us...preying on the innocent, destroying what we hold dear. A boy is gifted with ancient power to stand against them and their wicked plans. Body Of A Dragon, Heart Of A Human. The legend reborn, Come Forth, Kamen Rider Shinryu!
1. Destiny's Call

Kamen Rider Shinryu

Your Destiny Awaits,Release The Dragon Within!

Disclaimar: I don't own Kamen Rider but you probaubly figured that out.

Chapter 1: Resurrection Of Shinryu

_Darkness. It was all that could be seen. Left,Right,Up,Down. No matter where He turned there was emptiness,a black nothingness.  
Then a bright light shined before him,it grew and grew blinding the floating figure who shielded his eyes. When the light settled,he found  
himself floating in the midst of what looked like a crimson sky,strange purplish mist swirled here and there,below him was what could  
only be described as scorched earth,all around there were dead or dying trees,buildings lied in rubble,fires burned,an eerie silence  
confronted him. That's when a loud guttaral roar was heard._

He spun around and his eyes widened. Flying through the skies were dozens,hundreds,perhaps even thousands of dragons. They were  
of every shape and size imaginable,coloured in ways that boggled the mind. From their maws spewed forth streams of Fire,waves of Ice,  
currents of Lighting,the list went on. The magical blasts were directed at what looked like a gigantic black cloud. However,closer inspection  
revealed it was actually of composed of a seemingly endless legion of scaly,winged creatures. Some looked like birds,others demonic lizards,  
and even a good number were made up of grotesque insects.

The two waves collided over the figures head. Clashing tooth to claw they fought. For each one dragon killed two demons fell,the young man  
could barely even watch. Explosions went off all over the battlefield and in the sky. Despite the destruction neither side seemed to be winning.

That's...when the unexpected happened.

A strange silvery stream of energy came from nowhere. It instantly cut through a multitude of demons making them explode into flames the same  
colour of the beam. The blast faded but several more followed,they took out a good many of the demons along with several dragons. Both groups  
looked around,as did the young man. As they did large crescent waves slammed into the dragons,making them explode,then massive balls of  
blue fire came seemingly from above and incinerated over half the demonic horde.

Both groups looked up and saw a ominous silver light. Both groups let out mind-shattering battle cries and flew up to meet the descending force.  
_Beams of element energy rocketed forth but dissaipated as they neared the light. From it shot out arrows formed from energy,they cut through  
__the demons and dragons like a hot knife through butter. Yet still they flew...to meet their end._

The dark clouds began to swirl around the strange light as it began to hum,gathering some type of energy. A powerful suction drew in strange streams  
of astral force,the power formed a vortex. The energy reached its peak and both species then realized what was coming but were too late to do anything.  
From the vortex came a enormous blast of energy,it engulfed the two races making them scream in agony before dissolving into molecules and vanishing.

However,the blast didn't stop. It lit up the sky and impacted all the remaining fighters. The energy caused an explosion more powerful than any weapon that  
had ever existed. It engulfed and destroyed everything...

When the blast settled the young man saw the light settle in the middle of the destroyed world and the light lifted. He couldn't see who or what it was for a  
shadow shielded the creature from sight but he could tell it was a humanoid figure,covered in an armour of sorts with a pair of glowing eyes staring out at  
the world. Around its waist was what looked like a silver-grey belt,for the buckle there was the engraving of a dragon's head and set in it was a strange glowing  
jewel. The two figures faced each other and the young man said one name."Shinryu."

_-_

That's when the phone rang and snapped him out of his sleep."AAAHHH!"

A figure struggled out of the jumble of covers,from a glance one could tell it was a man possibly in his mid-to-late teens,his skin was fair and he had a head of  
short dark brown hair with hazelnut eyes,he also seemed to be a big person,being rather tall and some fat in certain parts of his body but could easily be put off  
as muscle. He struggled out of bed and rubbed his eyes. "Ah man,that's the third time this month."

The phone rang and the boy growled before snatching it off the hook and taking a deep breath before replying."Hello?"

"James Pike! Where the heck are you?" Cried a female voice on the other end. The one known as James sighed and rolled his eyes.  
"Sara,we've talked about this before,I'm a heavy sleeper,I gets up when I'm good and ready." The voice shot back."That's no excuse to keep me waiting for over an  
hour,we've had this planned for over a month and you have the nerve to-" James let her go off on her list of complaints for a few minutes then she finally calmed down.  
"Okay James,I'm going back to the caves and you'd better be there soon otherwise-""Yeah,yeah,I know,see ya soon."

He hung up and got dressed. Grey shirt,navy blue pants,socks,James was never one for matching colours and some people didn't approve of it,but James,well,he  
wasn;t just anybody. Always doing well in school but at the same time daydreaming,he had few people in terms of actual friends so Sara was an exception.  
James looked around his white-grey room,all around were books,video games,in one corner was his computer,and then there was his closet,filled with outfits  
for everyday use. "Morning Kuuga."

Yes,James was a fan of the Kamen Rider Series for plastered on his door was an image of Kamen Rider Kuuga posing heroically. James didn't totally understand  
it but he got this odd feeling whenever he saw them in action. He shook his head."James,get those thoughts out of your head,Kamen Riders only exist in TV shows."  
James grabbed his seeing glasses and slid them on. "Well,time to start the day."

James opened the door and stepped out,he looked around his modest house and sighed. "Another lonely one." The truth was,James had finished High School not too long  
ago and was now living in an apartment a few streets over from his parents home. He now wondered what to do with his future but at the moment he couldn't think of  
anything so he just took things one day at a time.

He worked at the local video and games store plus did other things so he wasn't sort on money. He threw together a quick breakfast of cereal and a banana then locked his door and headed out to face the world. Sitting in his yard was his motorcycle.

"Hey Gungnir,you ready?" Yes,before one asks,he did nickname his vehicle after a mythical artifact. Of course,he never referred to it as that when around normal folk cause  
that would be weird. He slung his knapsack into a seat and climbed on. Gungnir jumped to life and took off for the outskirts of his hometown,located in scenic Newfoundland.  
After 15 minutes of driving he arrived at what could only be described as the edge of a cliff. He got off and looked around.

"Sara?" James turned and there she was in his face,frowning."It's about gosh darn time ya arrived,I was ready to go in there without you!" James rubbed the back of his  
head and chuckled nervously."Okay,okay,I'm sorry,here." He reached into his knapsack and pulled out a Hershey Bar."My way of saying I'm sorr-"

Sara squealed and kissed James on the cheek before snatching the bar and stuffing her face with it. James simply folded his arms and waited for her to finish and smiled. _Gets her every time.._  
"Apology accepted." Sara exclaimed as she finished. Sara was a girl a few inches shorter than James with pale skin,and dark brown eyes,Her hair was black and hung  
to about her shoulders,she was also around James in age.

The two had known each other since elementary school and had been close friends,both liking many of the same things. However,where James was calm and quiet,Sara  
was a bit more"out there" and was more social than James. She was also rather snappy when it came to doing things thus causing occasional friction.

James wasn't readyfor a serious relationship and doubted he ever would,luckily Sara was alright with that. "So Sara,tell me why we're here again?" She glared at James for a moment then sighed.  
"Fine,but I'm only saying this one more time,I was exploring the hills behind our town when I noticed something strange down in the gorge,when I inspected it more carefully  
I found out it was actually cavern so." At his point she winked,"I decided the one to help me explore them was you,Mr Adventurous Spirit," James blushed at the nickname.

"Okay,you ready to go?" Sara nodded. "Let's go Spelunking."

James passed out a helmet and flashlight,slid on his own and the two walked down a path by the cliffside and after a while came to the entrance of a dark cavern.  
"Good thing you brought this gear otherwise we might get lost in this thing." James turned to her."Gee,thanks,"

Sara giggled."Come on." The two descended into the caves,their flashlights shining every which way. Along all the walls of the cave were designs of some sort,the strange thing was that James knew he saw them somewhere before...then it hit him."Uh,Sara?" She turned to him."Hmm?"

"I got to tell ya something and it can't wait." Sara's eyes sparkled. _Is he finally gonna say it?_ "I've been...having these dreams lately,and..." "Ohh,do they involve me?" 

James stared at her,wide-eyed."Of course not! Why the heck would I dream about you?" BAM! James held his head in agony while Sara stormed off in a huff.  
The young man groaned."Why,Why did I just blurt that?" He trudged after her. "Ah come on Sara,you know I didn't mean it like that." She turned around her eyes  
ready to burst. "You...You're such a meanie,James,you yelled at me!" James rolled his eyes,sometimes Sara acted years younger than what she was,and it annoyed  
him to no end.

She'd be like it for a while then snap back to normal.

James spoke to her."Sara,I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings,really,I am,it's just you ask such personal questions sometimes and-" That's when he saw it,a drawing on  
the wall.

"What's this?" His friend turned and looked at the wall,her expression changed to one of two moved close to the granite wall and shined their flashlights over it. All over the slab were drawings of what looked like mythical creatures,a good number of which seemed to be dragons. They seemed to be living happily in some kind of paradise but another painting showed the land being attacked by creatures that looked to be born of nightmares.

The paintings showed them destroying everything,torching the land,and killing everyone that got in their way. The scene then shifted to that of a strange figure who  
looked like a cross between a human and a dragon attacking and wiping out the beasts with unrivaled brutality. One of the last paintings showed the warrior facing  
what looked like the demon's leader and knocking him into what looked like a deep chasm,the warrior,beaten and battered,dragged its weary body into a cave,another  
painting showed a bright light emanating from the cave's catacombs then a massive slab of rock moved in the way.

"Wow," exclaimed looked at it for a few more moments before speaking."It's like these drawings are telling a story,from what I can tell,Long ago it seemed like there  
were a lot of magical creatures running around but then a big army of these demons started terrorizing them so this warrior appeared and defeated their leader,sealing him in a  
pit then the warrior sealed itself away in a cavern."

"Shinryu," muttered James. The young girl turned to him,he looked at her."That's the name of the mythical warrior."

All of a sudden,a loud rumble could be heard throughout the cave,the duo looked at each other in disbelief."What did you do?" demanded Sara. James shrugged,"I don't know." It was then that the great slab before them slid into the cave wall all by itself. It revealed a massive corridor that went down and down.

James friend turned to him."You were saying something about a dream?" The duo walked down the passageway while James told her about his "dream." He concluded."The  
weirdest part is that I actually felt that I was there,the way me and that warrior looked at each other...I don't know how to describe it." Sara pat him on the shoulder,her expression  
was one of concern and worry."We'll figure it all out later,right now we gotta see what's in this cave." James looked up and nodded. Right,there'll be time to think of this later.

The young man pushed the thoughts to the back of his head and hurried on with the adventurous gal. After a few minutes of walking,the cavern opened out into a large spacious  
area,it looked like it belonged to the tomb of a pharoah only without as much glittery...stuff. In the centre,there was a large rectangular platform,on it was the remnants of what  
looked to be a suit of armour,the suit seemed to be very old and rusted. James couldn't control himself,he moved toward it. "Whoa,wait James,what ya think you're doing?"  
He turned to Sara. "I don't know,I just...got this weird feeling...like something's calling me.." With that,he placed his hand on the armour...

And it crumbled to ashes.

"Nice Job James," praised Sara sarcastically,"You just destroyed what could've been a major discovery!" James watched her get a fiery look in her eyes,he braced himself for  
another attack but that's when he saw it. In the mound of dust there was a gleam of silver."Sara,look at this." He dusted off the dirt as his friend peered down,underneath the soot  
was what looked to be a large silvery belt buckle,on it was the engraving of a dragonic head,with spikes all along and a wing on each side of the head,set in the engraving as well  
seemed to be a navy blue jewel.

Another rumble went out,the two spun around,a part of the wall spun around revealing what looked like two eggs,both as big as a small football. One was painted silver and blue  
while the other was a mix of gold,red and bits of other colours. Both explorers simply stood there in total shock. "Are those..." Began Sara. James nodded."I think so."

It was then the walls of the tomb began shaking violently. "This place is gonna collapse," gasped Sara looking around. "We gotta get out of here." She ran to the entrance  
and looked back to see her close friend running to where the eggs were. I have to save those eggs,don't know grabbed both and rushed to his comrade."Let's go."  
Without waiting for a reply he dashed up the tunnel,Sara not far behind. The tunnel continued to cave in but they got out just in the nick of time.

Once far away the duo looked back and watch a pile of debris bury the ruins. The young man breathed in repeatedly."W...W..We did it." Sara stopped coughing and glared  
at him."Excuse me? You just went ahead and destroyed a ancient burial ground,something that could've been preserved for future generations,honestly,what were you  
thinking?" James sighed and watched her climb into her car,grumbling all the while.

This was how she always got when he did something she didn't like. Stomp,moan,groan for a while then come back as if nothing happened."Why,oh why did I bother-"  
James never heard the end for she'd already rode off. To James,she'd always been a strange one."Sometimes I wonder what planet you're from." he muttered to himself  
as he went over to his bike,he placed the eggs and buckle in the back. The young fella glanced at them and shook his he had a thought. He started up his bike  
and took off away from the ruins and back toward town.

Sometime later,he sat in a large white room filled with computers and electronics. The afternoon sun set outside the window as a man inspected the buckle James  
had presented him. The man had tanned skin,looked to be in his late 30's and was dressed in dark slacks with a white button-up shirt,his black hair was slicked back  
as he gazed at the item with intrigue. "Very Interesting." James leaned in. "What? What ya find?" Nick Longboard was one of James teachers while he was in college.  
The two had become good friends during the young man's stay,one thing James liked about Nick was his knowledge of computers,his interest in relics was good too.

Nick tapped a side of the object."See this?" James glanced at the spot and saw what looked to be runic lettering. "Yeah,letters,so?" Nick rolled his eyes. "It means that  
this item is part of a lost civilization," He scratched his freshly-shaven chin."The only thing is that I've never seen this type of language before,hold on a sec," He put down  
the buckle and ran out,a few moments later he came with a camera. He smiled."I'll just take a few pics and upload them to my computer,from there,I can start using  
my computer's hard drive to decipher them."

Nick took the pictures then handed the buckle back to James. "So what now,Doc?" Mr Longboard frowned. "Don't call me Doc,as for now,you should go,I need total  
concentration for this...unless ya got something else ya wanna show me." For a moment the Professor had a look of anticipation. James thought about showing him  
the eggs that were in his bike's trunk,but decided against it. Things are whacky enough as they are.

He shook his head. "No,that's all I got." His friend looked down for a second then shrugged. "Alright,you get out of here now,I got some work to do." James tipped his hat  
to him and prepared to walk out,his glasses slipped off his nose and clattered to the floor. "Darn it,I hate when that happens." Nick glanced over his shoulder. "Maybe it's  
time to get contacts." James looked back. "Sorry,those are even harder to look after." He scooped up his glasses and walked out. The professor smiled and shook his head. 

A palace perched on-top of a cliff...a blood-red sun laid floating behind it as a meeting was being held in a rather large and dimly-lit room, several figures stood before what seemed to be a massive dark ripple in the air. From within a pair of crimson eyes shot open and stared outwards. "At last.." began the figure in voice laced with malice.

"For ten thousand years we have waited...for ten thousand years we have chipped away at the seal binding us from the human world...and finally our efforts have yielded fruit,,,:

One of the figures stepped forward. "My lord, we have indeed put a crack through the seal...but it is very small, barely even enough to deploy a small battalion of our troops."

"I am well-aware of that," growled the voice. "That is why I have called upon a demon who has recently mastered our newest skill...mimicking human form.."

Everyone turned to see a humanoid figure waltz up and kneel before its master. "O Ssupreme One..I detest this form...how long mussst I maintain it?"

"Only until you have seen how far the humans have grown on their own...once you are certain our kind is still superior to theirs...you may reveal your true nature..."

The humanoid bowed its head. "Then I shall depart asss soon ass possible..."

"Do not forget that we need the energy of sorrow if we are to continue breaking the seal.." warned a female figure.

He snapped at her. "I know my duty! Now excuse me..." The being disappeared as it left for the human world.

The ripple narrowed its eyes. "And this time...no one will stand in our way!"

Later that evening,James lied in his bedroom,on his bed. He glanced at the eggs on the shelf then at the weird buckle in his hand. "Strange,you remind me so much  
of the Decadriver from Kamen Rider Decade...but sadly you don't come with a book filled with cards,so what are you?" He glanced at the eggs."And I'm not forgetting  
you,you two are part of this mystery as well," The young man pointed at them."So talk!" He then realized how ridicoulous he sounded and held his head.

"I really should get out more,I'm talking to frekkin eggs." He laid the item aside and laid down. "Maybe a good night's rest will straighten me out." James,despite the  
events of the day,was able to drift off to dreamland. However,as he slept,the silver egg began to crack.

He awoke the next morning and stretched. "  
Ahhh,much better,now what-" The young man saw that one of his eggs had vanished. "What the?" He jumped out of bed,now fully awake,and began looking around. "Ah man,oh man,where did it go? where?"

Just as he was about to panic furthur,he heard a loud thump. "Wha?" He listened. Bump. There it was. James grabbed a baseball bat he never used and  
cautiously snuck down the stairs with his weapon. If there was a burglar in his house they were about to get a face full of wood. He reached the bottom of  
the steps and cautiously peeked around the corner and what was there...surprised him.

His fridge door lied open and there sat,chewing on a chunk of raw meat,was a dragon. It looked to be no bigger than a football and was coloured silver with dark blue,almost black,  
streaks. James jaw dropped,he just stood there,not doing anything. A dragon was there in his kitchen. It looked to be quite content too. _Ah man,I hope that thing doesn't go ahead and burn down my kitchen._

When the bat hit the ground,the dragon turned and looked straight at him with its big blue eyes. It tilted its head and looked at James. The young man did the only thing he could.  
He raised a hand,tried to smile,and spoke. "Hello there."

Surprisingly,the creature spoke. "Hello,pleasure to meet you,sorry about the fridge but I've been asleep a very long time and was starving." It devoured the meat then spoke again. "If ya be so kind,what year is it?"

James shook himself out of shock and told the dragon. It scoffed."Rats! I've been  
asleep for over 10,000 years,those Dragon Elders never get anything right." The boy found the courage to speak."Uh,your name?" The dragon looked up and bowed.

"My apologies,my name is Drago Lee Scorch,descendant of the Ancient Beast lineage,and you are?" James replied."Uh,James Pike of Earth,and I've got a few questions for you."  
Drago nodded."Of course." James ran to his room and returned with the buckle."I was wondering if you could tell me...something wrong?" Drago stared at the item then James,then  
the belt again,now HE was the one in total shock. "This...can't be..that's the Dragon's Heart,how did you get it?"

The human sat down and told the dragon everything that had happened. Once he finished,Drago sat there for a second,frowning,then spoke. "Well,I have no reason to mistrust  
what you're saying,but can ya do me one favor?" James nodded,he pointed at the buckle."Take that thing and put it back where ya found it."

The boy stared at the dragon then frowned."Uh,I can't do that,the cave got buried in a mountain of rubble,and unless you've got superhuman strength to move the blockade,this  
thing," He raised the DH."Stays here." Drago simply sighed and shook his head. _Does this boy know what he's got there? _

"Alright,if you're gonna keep that,I'm gonna have to fill ya in on what exactly it is,get comfy and can ya pass me some more meat?" James rolled his eyes and pulled out some  
more meat then plopped on a chair. Drago was halfway through his second course before he spoke.

"Well,as you've figured out by now,I'm a dragon,and a very special one I might add. You see,many generations ago,your world was watched over by my kind and other mythological creatures,however,one day,the Youkai,a race of awful creatures from another dimension attacked. My people tried to fight them off but they were ruthless beings,many of our kind were killed and much of our world got destroyed,they were just breaking through the boundaries between our worlds when...He appeared."

At this,Drago got very quiet and dramatic. James jumped in."Shinryu." The little dragon nodded."A dragon like no other,possessing powers none of us had ever seen, he appeared at our darkest hour and swiftly defeated our enemies then battled their leader and sealed it into a deep abyss. After his victory,he realized he'd used up too much energy and couldn't continue living so,he sealed himself into a cave in the human world,I had become good friends with Shinryu so I wanted to stay with him,the  
Dragon Elders put me in a magical capsule and I went to sleep,until you and your friend decided to go on your trip."

He finished his meat then continued."Gosh,that's tasty,anyways,it's said that if the Youkai were ever to break the protection guarding them,they would gather their forces and attack the human world but Shinryu would return,or at least his soul would." At this,James tilted his head."Soul?" Drago smiled and nodded."Shinryu had such a wish to protect your kind when his body decayed his soul morphed into what you have in your hand."

James was deeply surprised,in his hand was somebody else's soul? He looked at Drago. "Now what do we do?" The beast flew around the room for a few seconds then  
plopped on the table."Well,since I can't exactly go back home I suppose I'm stuck here,and as for the Dragon's Heart...well,you'll just have to hang on to it,at least until we can  
find someone who's worthy of it." When he noticed James face,he stammered.

"Not that I have anything against your kind,it's just...you're such a young species,most of your people are too easily corrupted by power,they let it go to their heads and-"  
"I get it,I get it." interrupted James. The two just sat there as rain began pouring outside."Well,see ya kid." As the dragon hovered to the door James cried. "Wait!"

Drago turned around."Huh?" The young man spoke."It's not safe for you to be out in the rain...so why don't you stay here?"

The little fella was surprised."Really? You want me to stay here with you?" He nodded. "Yeah,this house is big enough for both of us and it'll be good to have some company for a change."

The beast looked down for a with this fella? He turned to James...and nodded."Sure,I don't have anywhere else to go anyway and I do wanna see what's changed in 10,000 years." So for the rest of the day,James gave his new friend a tour of the house,explaining,as best as he could about things like Video Games,Anime,T.V,Junk food,  
the whole lot and Drago hung on to every word. Almost like he was a child who had just gotten his hands on a really good book.

James felt happy too. He'd actually found someone who like listening to him. The young man also had the feeling that,unlike so many other folks,this was someone who  
wouldn't abandon him.

-

For the next couple days of his vacation from work,things passed normally for the new buds. However,that was all about to change. It started with James sitting in his  
chair in his living room reading a book. Drago was sleeping in a little basket made from a bunch of old clothes and a straw basket. The phone rang."Hello?"

"Hey James,listen,you not doing anything?" It was Sara. The young man rolled his eyes and replied. "No Sara,what ya want?" Her voice sounded like a mix of suspense and nervousness."Um,about the other day,and the way I acted,you knows I didn't mean it that way,it's just...well,it's,um" James shook his head. Poor Sara,never was good at apologizing.

"..It's okay,I get the picture and I forgive you,ya just gotta watch those outbursts more, I'm not deaf." Sara sighed in relief."That's a load off my chest,anyways,I wanted to ask if you wanted to hang out at the mall today,maybe get a bite,my treat."

He replied."Sure,meet ya at the mall in less than an hour." "Ok,see ya than." James hung up.  
"You really are something else," exclaimed Drago. The boy turned and looked at the smiling dragon."Despite what your so-called friends put you through,or the problems  
you face in your life,you push on,you forgive,where do you find the strength?"

James didn't answer for a few moments then jabbed at his chest."All I can say is that it comes from in here,it's a little lesson I learned in my life,you gotta be willing to stand up to a few obstacles in Life,take the good with the bad,it's not always fair but that's..how it is."

Drago shook his head."I must say,for such a young fella,you are wise beyond your years." "You wouldn't be the first to tell me that." James put on his coat and was about to walk out when his friend spoke."You're forgetting something."

He turned and saw Drago shove the Dragon's Heart toward him.

"And I'll be close by, don't want my friend to get in any trouble." James smiled. Drago really was a good fella. He picked up the buckle and opened the door to the cool spring day and walked out,the dragon not far behind.

In a faroff part of town,a man was walking alone,his skin was very pale,he was tall and rather skinny,his hair was dark green and so were his eyes. He was dressed in a rust-coloured  
sweatshirt with black jeans and a pair of brown boots,the look in his eyes was one of fierce determination. Just as he stopped to turn a corner,a ringing sound went off in his head  
and he stopped then looked around."...It's him...he's here,I must find him." The figure wandered into the crowd and the next moment...he was gone.

James sighed and patted his belly,as did Sara."Wow,that's good grub." His friend giggled."Told ya this place made good burgers." He glanced at her and grinned.  
It was good to have friends,nothing could possibly spoil this day. That's when a loud feminine scream was heard. "HELP! It's a monster!" The two shot up from the  
chairs just in time to see a woman run by. Sara made a face."What's her problem?" James peeked out and what he saw made him nearly faint.

Walking through the mall was what looked like a pale-skinned man with dark green hair and some kind of outfit,but the strangest thing was that...sticking out of his rear..was  
a long scaly snake's tail,the fella smirked as he walked. "I don't care how many lives I have to take,as long as I get Shinryu." He sniffed the air."And he's close."

Sara looked out and gasped."That thing...what is it?" The young man frowned."I don't know but it's definitely not here for the tea and cake." The guards ran out in full uniform with their pistols drawn,they opened fire,the bullets struck the beast...but it didn't even flinch. "Your pitiful toys are no match for a Serpent Youkai!"

At this,his skin began to peel,like an onion,underneath was green scaly skin and rusty patches,his face grew out as did his tongue,his body grew in proportion as sharp claws grew from his fingers and his boots shredded as its eyes became slitted like a cat. Now instead of a human was a humanoid snake who swung its tail and knocked the people  
aside.

It picked up a civilian and threw them through a shop window,shattering it. James hid in a corner with Sara who was white like a ghost. "This..can't be..happening..this only happens in Anime..." James looked up and saw the Serpent Youkai tearing apart all in its path. What to do now?

"James!" Drago flew down from above and Sara almost screamed at his sight. "James,who is that?" "Don't worry,he's Drago,my friend." The beast made a motion. Come on,we gotta motar." James looked down for a second then at the Dragon's Heart. What to do? Run and let more people die? Or stand and try to fight?

He stood and made his decision."No." "What?" they gasped. James turned to the Serpant."You can't really wanna fight that thing!" argued Sara pulling his arm,he shook her off.

"I have to Sara,look what's happening,all these people are suffering because of that thing." He clenched his fist."I refuse to stand by and let innocent people suffer one more  
moment,I...want to fight."

"So you're willing to give up being human?" The boy faced Drago's calm yet stern look."You're ready to give up everything to fight? Even if it means sacrificing your old life?" He nodded slowly."Yes." The dragon smiled."I knew there was something special about you from the first moment I saw ya,come on,let's roll."

James turned to Sara."It's okay,I'll protect you and everyone else." Sara,seeing there was no arguing,nodded and backed away. The young man walked in front of the beast  
with his buddy. "Another human? What can you do against me?" He held up the Dragon's Heart making it freeze for a second."The Dragon's Heart? But how? That means..."  
The boy placed the buckle at the center of his waist,a metallic strap shot out from each side and formed around his waist,connecting and making a belt.

"Hey,bud," Drago motioned to himself."You release that power without a regulator and you'll be driven mad,so use me." "You sure?"

The dragon nodded."I was made for stuff like this." James nodded and held out his hand,Drago landed then he was placed onto the buckle,his claws hooked into it and his body seemed to meld to the belt  
while his wings spread out. The jewel appeared from a slit in his head. "Damn you...who are you?" asked the Serpent with a snarl.

The boy smirked and raised his hand."Just...a fanboy-turned-Kamen Rider...,and don't you forget it!" The crystal glowed."Henshin." He brought his hand down on the jewel. The belt  
made a whirring sound and came to life,sending pulses of energy all through his body,a silvery aura flared to life around him,from that aura the form of a large silvery dragon-like  
creature appeared around him as did shards of crystal,it curled itself to James body turning him into a silhouette of energy, and the shards followed,as they collected he..changed.

His body became covered in armour. Silvery gauntlets covered his forearms,a pair of greaves encased his plating coated the upper half of them,a durable-looking silvery chestplate  
protected his main body and shoulderpads shaped like dragon heads now rested on his,well,shoulders,the parts not silver were covered by a thinner navy blue coating,the suit wrapped  
his entire body in protection.

His human noggin was now protected by a helmet shaped like a dragon's helm,it was coloured a greyish colour with a pair of horns curving back,his eyes now had a blue visor covering them,the visor was split down the middle to form makeshift eyes,and a mouthpiece protected the lower half of his face. The whole suit had a dragonic theme to it.

The lightshow settled and the warrior took a gander at himself in amazement. "Wow,I always wondered what it was like to wear one of these suits."

All the folks around stared in shock at this newcomer. They started muttering things."Who is that?""Is he another monster?""I think that's a Power Ranger.""No,it's a Kamen Rider." The Serpent growled.

"Shinryu,In the name of the Youkai,I will kill you!" James,now Shinryu,faced the beast."Bring it, Lizard-face!"

It roared and charged,Shinryu charged and the two collided,the beast shoved Shinryu back a couple steps but Shinryu shoved hard and drived the creature back,the snake drew its fist  
back and punched him in the chest sending him falling to the ground. The serpent marched over and brought its fist down,but the rider rolled to the side and avoided his head being  
smashed in. He jumped up and retaliated with a punch to the stomach which made the beast stumble back. "That...hurt..now you die.." The beast lashed with its tail,Shinryu didn't react  
fast enough and was knocked through the air and smacked off a pillar,denting it.

He struggled to get up."Oww." "You okay?" asked Drago,he nodded."Yeah." Shinryu rushed the snake again but was once more knocked to the side by the tail,however,when it swung the  
tail a third time,James put out his arms and caught it. "What the?" The Youkai tried to pull away but James growled and pulled hard on it. He tugged and tugged,this tug of war went on  
for a few seconds then a ripping noise was heard and the tail was pulled off.

"Gahhhh!" The monster toppled to the floor in pain and shock while James tossed the tail away,when it hit the ground it melted into a pool of green acid. "My tail..my precious tail.."

It stood up and glared at Shinryu."Killing you will not be enough,I will make you suffer worser than any being that has stood against my kind." Shinryu got in a stance. "Just try."  
The serpent let out a loud hiss and rushed him,he stepped to the side and backhanded its side,making it stumble. Serpent turned and tackled him to the floor,it opened its mouth to  
reveal sharp teeth and tried biting shoved the creature then brought up his leg and kicked it. The beast was catapulted over him and slammed into a wall.

It slid to the ground and stood again."No...I..won't..be..defeated!" The serpent charged with new ferocity and swung its claws wildly,Shinryu tried to block but his timing was off so a burst of sparks shot from his armour as its sharp nails found their mark. The demon swung again in a upward motion, causing another round of sparks as he stumbled about.

"Yaaa!" He drew back his fist and went to strike his enemy only for the Youkai to grab his hand and then strike him repeatedly in the torso again. James could feel stings in his body from the force of its claws. Finally, it delivered a powerful kick that sent him soaring through the air and smacking off a wall, cracking it.

".D..Damn...he's strong.." muttered Shinryu as he struggled to get up. "Oy!" cried Drago. "Ya better start taking him seriously otherwise we're both gonna die!"

_Along with lots of other people_, thought James. He nodded. "I gotcha, let's do this for real now!" The Rider got to his feet and put up his fists to meet the coming attack.

He put out a hand and caught the beast's claw,then the other. He then head butted its noggin following it up with a boot to its midsection,next was several punches to its face and one  
more fist attack which knocked it once more to the floor.

It was then that a weird sensation,like a burst of power,went through him."James,let's finsh this."said Drago."Okay."He replied. Shinryu hit the jewel on his belt, causing energy to flow through him and toward his feet. That dragon that appeared during his transformation appeared around him.

The rider moved his legs,one forward,one back,and did the same with his arms..The serpent charged one last time as Shinryu's legs became covered in silvery flames. He reared back."Spirit Dragon Kick." He leapt up in the air and the dragon combusted into even more energy and the rider came down with his attack,his boot collided with his foe's torso,the force sent Serpent flying and smacking into the floor. Shinryu landed and breathed deeply.

The Youkai stood but then there was a crack noise."Huh?" A long glowing seam appeared on its body and more soon appeared,soon it's whole body looked like a wall ready to crumble.  
"No! This can't be...I can't...I..." It walked forward a step then let out one last cry."Shinryu!" With that,the beast exploded in a massive ball of fire.

At the same moment,several strange figures were watching from the shadows,one of which looked like a feminine version of the Serpent. "Shinryu.."It muttered before fading away. 

Shinryu stood there watching the flames for a few seconds until Sara ran up to him."James...you were..incredible.." From behind his mask,the boy smiled,she then threw her arms around  
him as various folks,mostly kids,cheered for their savior.

"You did good,Boss,real good," exclaimed Drago who was grinning."So is that it?" James asked as they walked toward the mall's exit.

Drago shook his head vigorously."Oh no,that was only the beginning but don't  
worry,you're my master now,so I'm gonna stick with you no matter what." "Thanks Drago."

Just as the gang got outside the door,a sharp voice called."Freeze!" They looked up  
and saw what could only be described as 6 or 7 police cars,with like a dozen SWAT officers around,and two dozen policemen,all with weapons trained on the armoured man.

"W-What's going on?" wondered Drago. Shinryu just stood there and stared at the crowd. It looked like this day was gonna have a very,very unpleasant conclusion...

Kamen Rider Shinryu:

Preview: James and Sara are interrogated by the police and try to convince them of the threat to humanity but they don't take the duo seriously...not until the mate of the Youkai killed returns for revenge! Can Shinryu defeat a demon driven by hatred ? Will he earn the trust of the police?  
And what's happening to James himself?

Next time: The Human-Dragon Hybrid

And episode 1 is done, thank goodness. Hope ya enjoyed it and if ya have any ideas to make it better, don't hesitate to share them!

I accept good and bad reviews...as long as the bad tells what's wrong.

Until next time!


	2. The Human Dragon Hybrid

New Update at last! Sorry guys, I just been SUPER busy and stuff, but yeah seems a nice few people enjoy the plot so I'll continue it for their sake!

Drago: That's good to hear! So what's your plans for me and my Boss?

Me: You'll just have to wait and see, won't ya?

Drago:...alright, but it better be good stuff, got it?

Me: Yeah, yeah, just take your place already!

Drago: Hmph, fine!

Disclaimar: I don't own Kamen Rider...I only own this series and the characters that appear in it! Any references are entirely coincidental! Oh, and when I write in italics, it's usually a character's thoughts!

**Kamen Rider Shinryu, The story so far...**

**James, a once normal human boy and a fan of Kamen Rider, witnesses a mysterious yet ominous dream during his slumber of a dragon-like figure decimating an army  
of monsters. Things only get stranger when his friend Sara invites him on a cave exploration on the outskirts of town. During their adventure they encountered a strange  
batch of cave drawings depicting the same battle James witnessed in his dream. He unwittingly opens a secret passage leading to a burial chamber and unearths a number  
of artifacts, including two eggs and a belt buckle.**

**Later that night, one egg hatches and reveals a small dragon named Drago, who seems to have a slight case of amnesia. Luckily the two hit it off well and become fast friends.  
Not long after, James and Sara hang out at a mall that gets attacked by a menacing creature known as a Youkai. Resolving to protect the innocent, James and Drago join forces  
and activate the belt, the Dragon's Heart, becoming Kamen Rider Shinryu. With this power, they defeat the Youkai only to find themselves surrounded by police and swat teams!**

**What happens now? Just wait and find out!**

**Chapter 2: The Human-Dragon Hybrid**

The swat teams were staring down the armoured warrior, weapons trained on him, snipers had gathered on the rooftops of the town square and there were plenty of police  
cars crowded around the entrance. The sun had just begun to set behind one of the roofs, casting the snipers as black silhouettes against the red paint of the building.

In the center of all this madness stood one boy decked out in a silvery suit and his girl...sorry, good friend. James turned his head from side to side to get the full sense  
of how many officers were here. "Holy Shit.." muttered Sara, dumbstruck. "I never realized there were so many cops living in this town!"

"That makes two of us." commented the fanboy-turned-Rider. Drago chirped in. "Uh, Boss? Got any ideas how we're gonna get out of this? Cause I really don't like  
those black shiny things these fellas are holding!"

James glanced down at Drago. "I don't know...guess all we can do is wait and see what happens." The little dragon growled in an irritated way but agreed. For a  
good couple minutes, nothing happened. At last, a megaphone could be heard. "Alright you, step away from the girl very slowly with your hands up!"

Without hesitating, the boy rose his hands and stepped away from his friend a few feet. "It's alright!" He cried out. "I'm not gonna hurt any of you!  
I'm here to help-" But he stopped when Sara walked in front of him with her arm outstretched, a serious expression on her face.

"What's the matter with you people?" She shouted angrily. Immediately, the cops all looked at each with question mark looks. The megaphone  
could be heard again. "Er, lady, please step away from the individual? This doesn't concern you."

Sara's eye twitched. "Like hell I will! And if you call me a lady again I'll blacken your eyes!" She rose a fist to emphasize her point. "Anyways,  
what are you all doing here? And why are you giving my friend the evil eye?"

"I believe I can answer that." called out an male voice from behind the row of cops. The guys in uniform moved aside to allow a figure to walk forward.  
He looked to be in his mid-to-late 30s with tanned skin and a head of curly brown-black hair hidden under a dusty fedora and a long coat that went down  
to his knees. He glanced up with his dark green eyes at the two and tipped his hat in greeting. "Private Investigator, Andrew Maxwell, at your service."

The young man in armour nodded right back. "A pleasure, sir." He reached out his hand only to stop at the sound of guns clicking. James glanced  
awkwardly in their direction as Andrew sighed. "You'll have to excuse these guys, most of them have itchy trigger-fingers and to them, you look like  
a giant bulls-eye that they can't wait to riddle with bullets." He waved them off, making them gradually disperse away.

Sara scoffed in disqust. "And how exactly do you protect the peace with people that shoot first, ask questions later?" The investigator smiled in her  
direction. "With a lot of discipline, but that's not important right now.." He shook Shinryu's hand. "The pleasure's all mine, now to answer your questions  
We got a bunch of distressed phone calls from people inside this mall about some snake monster tearing up the place and a guy in a suit of armour  
fighting and killing the guy..."

Andrew shook his head as if he couldn't believe the words that were coming out of his mouth. "Obviously, my superiors thought it was some joke  
thought up by a bunch of hooligans but then they got to talking and the calls sounded too real to ignore...and the rest.." He shrugged. "Is history as they say."

James friend nodded. "So, can we go now?" Andrew frowned. "Not yet, I gotta make sure you kids are telling the truth and this hasn't all been some  
harsh joke,cause let me tell you, if it is you could be facing serious jail time."

At this, James snapped. "What?" He pounded his chestplate. "Doesn't this armour tell the whole story?" Andrew looked it over and nodded. "Well, I  
gotta admit that's some impressive-looking armour...but then again you youngsters have always amazed me...I wouldn't be surprised if you had made it  
yourself..."

Sara gnarled her teeth and grabbed his arm. "You want proof? Fine, I'll give you proof," As she was about to enter the mall, she glowered at Shinryu.  
"You wait here!" Without waiting for an answer, she marched in the doors with the investigator close behind.

James sighed to himself. "Remind me not to get on her bad side." quipped Drago from the belt. James nodded and took his seat on a nearby  
bench, face in hands, head filled with thoughts of all the craziness that happened in the run of one week. _What's worse, Drago said this was  
just the beginning..._

"Kamen Rider?" He looked up to see a little boy standing there with his mom and dad, a worried expression on his face. Shinryu responded.  
"Yes, young man? Anything I can help you with?"

The boy seemed nervous about something until his mom patted him on the shoulder and nodded. He nodded right back and held up his  
arm, covered by a cast. "I was wondering...could you..sign my cast?"

From behind his mask James jaw dropped, but then he smiled and nodded. "Of course." He took the pen from the father and wrote  
his name on it. "There ya go, stay strong, okay?" The boy's face lit up. "Thank you Kamen Rider." His parents nodded in thanks and  
rushed off.

Shinryu smiled after them. "Ya know Drago? I think I can get use to being a Kamen Rider..." From his perch on the belt, Drago chuckled...

**Inside the Mall...**

In the security room of the mall, Andrew and Sara stood together, watching the footage on the screen of the weird man walking into the  
mall, then shredding his skin and becoming the Serpent Youkai then going on a bloody rampage, attacking people and destroying things.  
The few cops in the mall tried their best to fend off the beast but their shots did nothing more than piss off the creature and make it  
more destructive.

Of course, the film then showed Kamen Rider going up against the creature...and getting his butt kicked...but he still destroyed the  
beast in the end and that's the important part. After he finished watching, Andrew calmly withdrew a bag from his coat and placed  
the footage tape in.

Sara turned to him with a smug look on her face. "Now you believe us?" Andrew folded his arms and nodded, not bothering to notice  
the triumphant expression she had on. "Alright, you're off the hook, but your friend is still a person of interest."

This made Sara's smirk disappear faster than a ice cube in a pool of lava. "What are you saying?" Andrew headed for the door, Sara  
followed. "My questions about this being a hoax have been answered, but this only leads to more questions. What is it these "Youkai"  
want? How did they get to our world? Are there gonna be more of them? And there's a million other questions without any answers.."

He turned to the dark-haired girl. "I believe your Kamen Rider buddy out there might hold the key to all of this..." At those words,  
Sara turned her head to the side, avoiding his glance. Andrew narrowed his eyebrows in suspicion. "You know who it is, don't you?"

Sara didn't bother to say anything, the investigator didn't relent though. "Miss, if there's anything yet you haven't told me, please tell  
me now!" But Sara turned her back to him. "I refuse." She bluntly stated.

Andrew growled. "You have to tell me! Anything you say could help save more lives!" "And let Kamen Rider become your lapdog?"  
shot back Sara. "I worked hard to earn his trust and telling you his secret identity...it would.." She turned to glare at him. "It would  
be like a giant slap in the face."

The investigator straightened up. "Fine, don't tell me. I'll ask him myself!" He turned to go but Sara barged right past him, sending  
him careening into a nearby wall. "H-Hey!"

James stood outside the mall, handing out autographs to the eager kiddies around him, only to hear the doors opening as Sara ran  
toward him. "Kamen Rider! You have to leave now!" Shinryu wondered what was going on. "Why?"

Sara grabbed him by the hand and led him. "That Andrew guy...I think he wants to interrogate you and expose your identity!"  
James didn't say anything but he knew the identity of a Rider was important, it could be manipulated if the wrong groups  
found out, and even if Andrew was on the side of good, he wasn't ready to take that risk yet.

"Ok," Shinryu put his hands on her shoulders. "Let's split up, you go to your house, I'll go to mine, I highly doubt he can follow  
both of us!" Sara nodded. "If I can, I'll call you later."

He nodded and with that, they split up. Sara disappeared down the street and into downtown while James quickly jumped on  
his motorcycle, started the engine and tore off down the street just as Andrew burst through the exit and feverishly looked  
around. "Where are they? Where'd they go?" But the citizens around him simply shrugged and went on their way,

After standing there clueless for about 5 minutes, he growled and smacked his fist against the nearby wall. "_Damnit!" I knew  
I shouldn't have been so direct..._

He seethed and scowled down at the pavement, then remembered the bag with the tape. He stalked away toward his car.  
It was getting late and he was tired.

At least he had the tape...

**Meanwhile, in the Youkai Realm...**  
The massive castle stood as ominous as ever, overlooking the Youkai Realm. The blood-red sun floating behind it only  
helped to reinforce the fact that the people who dwelled in this place were NOT ones to trifle with.

The Youkai Realm itself...was a mystery. It wasn't a paradise but it wasn't a wasteland either. Almost everywhere you  
walked you would find creatures wandering about. Some small, some large, a couple that were truly nightmarish, and  
one or two...who were just weird.

The castle belonged to the supreme ruler of the demons: Devil King Abaddon, and his four generals, The Demon Lords.

Within the eerie halls, footsteps could be heard as a figure dressed all in black walked through the halls. On closer  
inspection, it turned out the black clothing was actually feathers, the figure was a bird...or more like an anthro raven.  
She had a gorgeous body with a hourglass form, long legs ending in taloned feet, her silky wings were wrapped around  
her body like a cloak. A plume of dark feathers formed a mane of hair and two ruby eyes stood atop her beak.

She approached the door to the meeting chamber, ornamented with the image of a horned demon head surrounded by  
a mane of energy and fire. The door opened as the bird woman walked in, there were three other beings present in the  
room.

In one corner of the room was a tall humanoid insect whose body looked to be composed of multiple insect breeds.  
On his back was the shell of a hercules beetle, wrapped around his muscular torso were the appendages of roaches  
and other unpleasant creatures. Fused to his arms were the blades of a preying mantis, his eyes looked like a cross  
between a spider's and a mosquito while his mouth was mostly a black widow's. His legs were thin yet well-built. His  
whole body was made up of brown and green blotches with bits of blue and white here and there.

The second one standing opposite him was a peculiar sight. He looked much like a goblin only taller and skinnier with  
the left side of his face covered over by a sheet of steel with a optical eye in place of a real one. Infact, his right hand  
and left leg were metallic. He was clad in a dark tunic with long boots that had spikes coming out of the toes, over this  
was a tattered black robe. Perched on his head was a weird hat with horns sticking out of it. His one real eye was yellow  
and slitted like a cat's. He seemed very interested in the book he was reading as he didn't even look up to acknowledge  
the new arrival.

And the last one...was nothing too special, although the aura she gave off would make you feel uneasy even if you were  
a demon. She was dressed in a long purple cloak secured to her by the gold orb on her neck and she had a hood tucked  
up to conceal her face, but one could make out traces of wrinkles through the shadows that shielded most of the hag's face.  
Clutched between her wrinkled hands was a glowing crystal orb. The woman was the only one out of the three to take  
notice of the new arrival.

"Aah, Lilith," said the hag with the affection of a old granny. "I trust your subordinate has reported back with good news?"

The Raven Youkai, revealed to be Lilith, sadly shook her head. "I'm afraid not, the Serpent Youkai's mate has reported back  
that he has been slain.."

The bug-man almost burst out laughing. "Paff! Don't kid us, Lilith! How can a mere human defeat us Youkai? Our kind is  
superior to them in every way!"

The mechanical goblin snapped his book shut, his interest piqued by the news. "Well, we have not had contact with humans in  
over 10,000 years. It's only logical that they have evolved under their own power..perhaps they have developed a way to slay  
our kind?"

The bug creature snarled. "I don't care if it's been 10,000 or 100,000 years! Humans are Humans! They will always be weak,  
useless and disqusting creatures!" He punched the wall in frustration, putting a fair-sized hole in it. "They all deserve to die!"

"Enough Beelezebub," ordered the old woman. "At least allow Lilith to explain herself before you go off and do something stupid again!"

Beelzebub leaned against the wall and folded his arms with a hmph. Lilth nodded in thanks. "Thank you, Gehenna," She turned to  
address her fellow demons. "As I said, the Serpent Youkai I sent to attack the Human World has been slain...but it was not by  
human hands!"

This caught everyone by surprise. "It was by someone calling them self Kamen Rider!" That's when another voice entered the  
room, a voice that all of them recalled. "Kamen Rider...Interesting..."

The four Demon Lords turned towards the giant projection before them. "Devil King Abaddon!" cried Lilith as she kneeled before  
her superior.

"Demon Lord Lilith!" came Abaddon's voice. "Exactly what did you learn about this...Kamen Rider?" The Raven Youkai rose  
her gaze. "The Youkai infiltrated one of the human's major outlets and caused massive panic and disorder..but before any life  
energy could be gathered a lone boy stood against him and transformed into the one known as Kamen Rider.." She narrowed  
her eyes. "He called himself Shinryu."

"Shinryu?" cried Abaddon in shock. "Impossible!" blurted Beelezebub. "There is no possible way Shinryu could've survived the  
wounds he sustained from the Devil King's attacks!"

The mecha-goblin offered. "Perhaps Shinryu found a way for his essence to live on..in case we ever attempted to invade the Human  
world again.."

"It would be a likely explanation," agreed Gehenna. "Shinryu was always known for his great wisdom..."

"Shinryu..." growled Abaddon. "Even after death...even after all these milennia, you torment us still...Where is the mate of the  
Serpent Youkai?" The doors flew open as a creature similar to the Serpent Youkai walked in. However, it had a more slender,  
hourglass shape and more feminine features, plus the scales appeared smoother then its twin.

"Do you wish for revenge?" the female demon nodded. "Do you wish to win back the honor of your tribe?" Another nod. "Then  
go, let your hatred become your strength. Kill Shinryu and bring me his severed head!" The eyes within the projection glowed to  
emphasize its point.

The Serpent bowed. "For the sake of my fallen mate, and for the glory of the Great Demon Empire, I will not fail you, master!"  
She turned and left as quickly as she came.

The mechanical demon opened his book again with a sigh. "A shame,really.." The other Lords leered at him, he added. "I was  
hoping to study him, it's not often I find such fascinating creatures."

The Lords all facepalmed at this. Malthus was a little TOO obsessed with his toys sometimes, it was actually quite annoying...

At James' House

"Ughh...ah man, what a dream.." James cringed as he opened his eyes to be greeted by the sight of his room. "That's the last  
time I eat fettucine alfredo before going to bed.." He sat up and wiped the sleep from his eyes as he noticed, to his surprise,  
he was fully clothed.

"...That's weird, I don't remember going to sleep with my clothes on.." It was then he heard a yawn, so he spun around to  
be greeted by the sight of a small silvery dragon yawning on the windowsill. "Well, it's about time you woke up, Boss."

"Drago!" gasped James as he walked over to his friend. "So, if you're here..then that means.." He tapped his chin for a few  
seconds then his eyes widened in realization. "All that stuff.." He backed away, only to tumble back onto his bed. "It..It really  
happened..I..I became a Rider...and I..I killed that thing.."

Drago chuckled as he flapped his wings about. "Yep, you got him good, heh, the look on his face just before he exploded  
was priceless...oy, what's wrong?" He had noticed James was feeling around his torso, obviously concerned about...something.

"Where is it? Where's the Dragon's Heart?" That's when the phone on his stand ringed, he picked up the receiver and spoke into  
it calmly. "..Hello?"

"James? Oh thank goodness I finally caught you! Where you been?" It was Nick. James tried to answer. "Uh.." But his friend  
cut him off. "Never mind, I called to say I finally made some progress with the wording I found on that belt buckle.."

If the young man wasn't awake before...he was now! "Ok, tell me what you found out." For a moment, Nick took a deep  
breath then began. "..That item you hold...it's cursed...whoever puts it on...it fuses into their body...becomes a part of them..and  
it...changes their genetic structure..makes them part Dragon..."

The news was like a giant punch to the stomach, James couldn't speak, couldn't move, nothing. "I see..." Nick had to ask. "James...you  
didn't...put it on by any chance did you?" The boy didn't know what to say, then again what could one say in this situation? "Uh...urm.."

Nick's sigh could be heard over the phone. "James, you don't have to hide the truth, just tell me please, did you or didn't you?"

James, hesitantly, replied. "..Yes, I put it on." Nick didn't say anything, neither did James or Drago, until. "...Ok...alright James, I  
gotta run a few errands but I promise I'll keep deciphering the runes, maybe we can find a way for you to remove it that doesn't  
involve killing you...if I find anything else you'll be the first to know.."

The boy, without much emotion, nodded. "Right, thanks Nick." "And James...for what it's worth..I'm sorry..."

James shook his head. "Don't be sorry for something you had no part in...I'm the one who decided to put on the belt and  
now I'm the one who has to live with the consequences..."

Nick's calm voice came through. "Alright James, I gotta go, but I'll keep in touch...and good luck..." James put down the phone  
as his partner started up.

"I don't see what the big deal is, so you're part dragon now, how's that a bad thing?" The boy scoffed as he scowled at the little  
floating beast. "That's easy for you to say! You've been a dragon your whole life, so of course your use to it! Cause you were  
born into being one! Me? I was just some normal kid before I decided to go galloping into that cave!"

Drago frowned in a disapproving manner. "What are you getting snippy at me for? I'm not the one who made you put on the  
belt, you did it under your own power! If you wanna get pissed at anybody, get pissed at yourself!"

James growled to himself. "Whatever, I'm going for a walk." He grabbed his coat off his bed and headed out the door, Drago  
not far behind, he raised an eyebrow at this. "What are you doing?"

The dragon rolled his eyes. "Following you, duh! I can't exactly leave my Boss alone if he gets into trouble," He then muttered  
to himself. "Even if you're being a stingy prick..."

James could've sworn he heard those words. _Must be the dragon's DNA messing with me... _"Drago, I'm sorry I got upset with  
you, it's just this is a lot to accept. I mean, in the course of one week, I nearly got crushed by a collapsing cavern, I meet a dragon,  
me and my friend get attacked by some kind of snake monster, I transform into a Tokusatsu-style superhero and beat the crap out  
of the guy, I get assaulted by like a gazillion cops, and to top things off I just now find out I'm part dragon..."

He cocked an eye at his friend. "So you'll forgive me if I seem a little bamboozled.." Drago thought over this for a second, then  
nodded. "Ok, I forgive you...to be honest, I didn't expect the Dragon's Heart to bond with you so quickly," He grinned. "Shinryu  
must really like you..."

James gave a distant look to the heavens. "Gee, am I mister lucky or what?" Noticing a group of people down the street, he  
quickly tucked Drago inside his coat and walked on, whistling a tune, pretending everything was normal...until..."JAMESSY!"

He stopped, his face turning pale like stone. "Oh no.." He tried to run down the street only to feel a massive weight on his back  
and he collapsed face-first to the ground. "Oww..." He turned his head to see a cherry-happy face smiling at him. "Good afternoon,  
sleepy-head."

James laughed. "Good to see ya too Sara...uh, could you let me get up? You're kinda squatting my partner.." Sara went red with  
embarrassment and helped him to his feet, she hauled the delirious beast out of James' coat and hugged him. "Aww, is the little  
dragon hurt? I'm sorry!"

Drago nervously glanced around. "Uh, that's okay, I guess.." She kissed him on the cheek and gave him back to his Boss. "So  
what happened to ya? I called and called but there was no answer..."

The young man scratched his head. "Sorry Sara, I was just so tired after everything that happened yesterday, all I recall is going  
into my house and flopping down on the bed..."

His friend nodded, her arms folded. "Yeah, yesterday was really a jam-packed one.." Her expression then turned to a somber one.  
"Ya know, you really worried me when you went to fight that demon.." James turned his head in shame and slunk his shoulders.

"I'm sorry Sara, I just wanted to protect all those innocent people from that...thing.." "That thing was a Youkai.." cut in Drago.

Both James and his girl glanced down at the dragon. "A Youkai?" Drago sighed. This was gonna take some time...

**At The Restaurant...**

Sara put down her glass of iced tea as she could barely register what she'd just been told. "Demons? Actual Demons?"

Drago nodded. "Demons of every shape and form imaginable, wielding powers that you normal humans can barely  
comprehend...plus let's not forget their insane lifespans.."

James put down his mug of hot chocolate, for some reason, the usual hotness didn't bother him so much. "And they  
live in this alternate world known as the Youkai Realm, a place that's ruled over by this group called the Great Demon Empire  
who are intent on conquering Earth."

Drago nodded. "Yes, 10,000 years ago they attempted to conquer it once but Shinryu rallied a massive army of dragons and  
was able to crush the Devil King's forces, then he faced Abaddon, the King of the Youkai, and emerged victorious, he sealed  
the portal to the Youkai Realm with a magical binding called the Great Seal...and the rest you know..."

Sara sighed. "And it looks like that seal's finally breaking after all these years." James jumped in. "Hey Drago, if the Seal's  
coming apart, shouldn't there be like a whole army of you guys waiting to seal it back up again?"

The dragon glanced up at his partner. "That's the thing, I don't recall much beyond that...I think I have amnesia.."

James friend groaned. "So basically we're alone in the snake pit with nobody to call for help...just great.."

Our hero had his say though. "Well, at least we know what we're up against, besides you try being asleep for 10,000 years  
and attempting to remember anything."

"Pfft, I'm lucky I can even recall my name." added Drago, not too pleased with Sara's lack of gratitude.

Sara then asked the big question. "So...you're a dragon now?" James shrugged. "I think I'm only half-dragon, I mean you  
don't see me sprouting wings or breathing fire and all that..."

The black-haired girl nodded. "Yeah, I was wondering why you didn't have your glasses on." James felt around his face-  
and sure enough, he wasn't wearing any. "Hmm, so that's why my vision is so 20/20."

Drago nudged in. "See? Already you notice benefits, Perfect vision being one of them, and you'll soon be noticing other  
benefits, and-"

"Hush!" hissed Sara, Drago stopped and watched as she pulled her chair over beside James and put an arm around his  
back as he muttered aloud. "What am I gonna do? What CAN I do? If I'm...changing...how am I gonna lead my life?"

"...James, I can't speak for other people but I just want you to know...no matter what happens I'll be here for you.."  
He glanced up, perked by what Sara was saying. "To be honest, I don't care, if everybody around here treats you  
differently just because you're some kind of hybrid creature," She had that evil look in her eye. "They can all just  
burn in hell cause you don't need people like that around."

"And Boss," added Drago. "What I care about right now is your well-being, and if anybody tries to hurt you in any way  
I'll BBQ them myself, hehe."

Sara gave the poor lad a kiss on the cheek, making him blush. "No matter how you change on the outside James, you're  
always gonna be the same on the inside."

At this, James joked. "A dorky, glasses-wearing weirdo who couldn't even get a date to the prom?" She hauled off and  
bopped him one in the shoulder.

"No! A kind, sweet, and compassionate young man...and you're not dorky!" She ruffled his hair, making him laugh."Fine,fine,  
thanks you guys, I feel a little better now." He gulped his hot chocolate down in one round, dropped a couple bills on the table  
then left the cafe with his friends by his side.

It was as they walked down the road that he noticed something wrong with the sky. "Hrmm, that's weird, it was sunny just a  
moment ago.." wondered James, it was then a huge bolt of lightning came from the sky and smashed into the downtown area  
causing a explosion of sorts and a tall pillar of smoke to ascend upwards.

"What the hell was that?" demaded Sara. James shook his head. "I don't know, but we should check it out!"

With that, they raced off towards the column of smoke.

**Downtown Area...**

Meanwhile, the Serpent Youkai was having a glorious time, smashing apart cars, tipping over light poles and causing mass panic.  
The police were out, wielding guns of all sorts but like before, their assaults were like mosquito bites and the Youkai simply  
swatted them aside.

"Worms!" She cried. "Where is the one known as Shinryu? Bring me the one who murdured my love!" She picked up a nearby  
police car and sent it flying through the window of a clothing store.

James and Sara stood in a alleyway and watched the carnage. "How horrible.." murmured Sara, her mouth cupped in terror of  
the demon's strength.

The hybrid boy though gnarled his teeth, "Sara, get somewhere safe, me and Drago will handle this.." She nodded and stayed behind  
as her friend stepped forward.

He moved his arm over his waist, the air around it shimmered as the Dragon's Heart appeared in all its glory. "Let's go, Drago!"  
Drago flew around him before connecting to the belt buckle. James hit the jewel button. "Henshin!"

The Serpent Youkai turned its head just in time to receive a punch to the jawbone, actually TWO punches to the jaw, and then a third  
fist rammed into her gut. She briefly got a look at the dark-haired boy before her. _A human? _No, something wasn't right...and then she  
saw for the briefest moment, the silhouette of a silver dragon around his form, glaring with dagger eyes at her.

"YOU!" She cried as the boy finished transforming, with the added power of the Rider armour he was able to lift his foe up into the  
air and toss her onto the roof of a car, smashing it to pieces with her landing. Shinryu readied himself for battle, sliding one foot out  
and pulling back an arm while thrusting out his free hand.

The snake looked up from her place on the car, saw him beckoning to her with a "come on" motion, this enraged her. _Overconfident Fool! _She  
did a graceful leap to her feet, hissed at him with a long fork-like tongue, then sprang off the smashed vehicle and raced toward him, Shinryu  
evaded a swipe from her claw-tipped fingernails, he jumped backwards to avoid the pain of her tail whip and went in fists flying.

Several punches found their mark, but the Youkai snatched both his wrists and squeezed them tightly, making him cringe. This gave the gal  
ample time to lift her foot and strike him hard in the gut, she did it again and again, getting some sense of sick satisfaction from watching her  
love's killer suffer.

Finally, she let go of him, only to do a twirl motion and hit him in the chestplate, the force of the attack sent him flying and smacking hard into  
the pavement. James knew he would feel that one in the morning. "Oy Boss, you okay?" asked Drago. The Rider nodded. "Y-Yeah..just a  
little winded that's all..."

All of a sudden, the demon's tail wrapped around his throat, cutting off circulation, the boy was lifted into the air and turned to face the heated  
scowl the Youkai gave him. "Pathetic...your powers have weakened greatly since you've been asleep Shinryu.." She slammed his body onto the  
hard pavement then drew him in again. "How my mate fell at your feeble hands, I will never underssstttaaanndd..." The demon smashed him  
again on the road and looked him in the eye.

He spoke. "Look..you've obviously got me mixed up with someone else..I'm just a guy filling in for him..." The Youkai spat out a blot of acid  
in disqust. "All the more reason for me to kill you..and then move on to the rest of this worthless town.."

James' eyes widened in disbelief. "No...you wouldn't..." The Serpent smiled evilly, showing she was deadly serious. She casually flung him  
against a brick wall, he landed sitting rightside up, head lopped to the side as she slowly advanced on him, flicking her wrist causing her  
claws to sharpen. "I'm gonna enjoy disemboweling you, murdurer.."

Drago twitched. "Uh, Boss? You might wanna do something..and soon.." He glanced between his incapacitated partner and the Youkai,who  
seemed to be savouring this moment as she approached. "You will make a fine banquet for me and the rest of my tribe...you and your succulent  
little dragon friend..."

Now she was looming right on top of him, a shadow of death. She rose her claw..."BOSS!" cried Drago. "DIE!" roared the snake as she  
swung downward...only for a hand to grip her wrist. Her look of joy was replaced with surprise as she saw her enemy lift his head. His  
eyes glowing. "I..." He squeezed harder, making her shudder. "Will never..." He hit her in the face with his other hand. "Let you.." A boot  
to the torso. "Take this city..."

The force of the blows sent her tumbling back as she rose to his feet, he walked forward, filled with destructive intent as he unleashed a  
barrage of attacks. A fist to the jaw, a heel kick to the midsection, and so on. All while muttering. "And...I..will..never...give...UP!" One  
last punch sent the Youkai sent her careening into a mailbox, moaning in pain.

"Nice one, Boss," praised Drago with a grin. "I knew you still had it in ya, now let's finish her together!" Shinryu nodded and clenched his  
hands, his leg igniting into a silver pillar of flame. The Youkai, disorientied, could barely make out the Rider leaping into the air and coming  
down with a flaming kick. Her eyes widened in horror, fearing this was the end...until...

"Freeze! Both of you!" James turned his head. "Huh?" A big mistake, cause that split-second interruption allowed her to open her maw  
and spew forth a pile of acid, it smeared all over his torso, sizzling, and made him collapse to the ground. "AAGGHH!" James struggled  
to look and saw Andrew there, holding a a pair of revolvers, one pointed at Shinryu, the other at the Youkai.

James snapped. "What on earth do you think you're doing?" Andrew wore a no-nonsense expression on his face. "Kamen Rider...I'm  
here to take you in for questioning..."

This made the boy blow up. "WHAT?" He flung his arm in the direction of the demon. "Can't you see I have bigger things to worry about  
than your petty interrogation?" But then a scream was heard. "AAHHHH!" James and Andrew turned their heads, only to hear a sinister  
chuckle.

They looked up to the roof and there stood the Serpent Youkai, tucked under its arm was Sara's limp body. "SARA!" cried James in  
anger, worried. "Put her down!" yelled Andrew as he aimed his revolver, but the Youkai shook her head.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, human, besides," She held out Sara's comatose form. "Do you really wanna endanger this female's life?"

"Damn you!" cried Shinryu, clenching his hand in fury. "Let her go!" The Youkai growled. "I'll take from you what you took from me, if ya  
want her back, come to the Reservoir Plant in the next two hours, come alone..." She ran a finger along the girl's cheek. "Or I assure you, the  
young one will suffer...a most unpleasant fate..."

With the threat made, she turned and leapt off across the rooftops. James felt dizzy, he fell to his knees as his armour shimmered and faded.  
"Ughh...oh Sara..."

Andrew was too shocked for words, _It's a kid? A damn kid's been fighting these things? _But then he saw the boy wasn't in the best shape  
so he ran over beside him. "Hey! You alright? Come on, hang in there!"

At first, James didn't say anything, still processing everything that just happened. He then muttered. "..you idiot.." This caught the investigator  
off-guard, only to be really surprised when the boy floored him with one powerful punch that broke his nose and sent him falling backward onto  
the pavement, a thin trail of red stuff flowing out from his nostril.

He quickly pulled out a cloth and wiped away as much of the blood as he could before looking up and seeing James walking down the street,  
holding his arm, breathing heavily. Andrew' forehead gave a twitch. "H-Hey!" He raced after the boy and got in front of him. "Mind telling  
me what that was about?"

The boy scoffed. "If you had half a brain cell, you would know why.." He pushed past him. "Now move aside, I got a friend to save.." But  
Andrew would have none of it. "First, you run from the law, then you engage in a fist-fight with...whatever that thing was, and now you punch  
the daylights of me, give me one good reason why I shouldn't just lock you up right now!"

James snarled, how could this man be so stupid? "One? I'll give you three! First, if you lay so much as a hand on me, my friend will roast you  
alive.." He nodded to Drago, who spat a tiny fireball onto Andrew's fedora, making him rip it off and brush the smoke with his sleeve. "Second,  
the more time I waste standing here with you, the less chance I'll be able to rescue that girl safe and sound.."

He had to admit, the kid had him there, Time was not on their side. "And third, in case you didn't notice, we had everything under control until you  
decided to interfere, if you had just taken the hint and just LET me finish off the demon, an innocent bystander wouldn't have been captured and  
we wouldn't be standing here having this argument!"

The power behind his words shook the man to the core. James jabbed him in the chest. "So if anything bad happens to her..I'm blaming you! Come  
on, Drago!" The two walked off but James collapsed to his knees again. Andrew ran over beside him. "You need medical attention, I'm taking you  
to the hospital!"

Too weak to care, the boy sighed but agreed. He and his partner were carried over to the car and drove off to the nearest medical facility.

_I just hope I'm not too late to save Sara..._

**Hospital, Night Time...**

Andrew sat in the waiting room, his nose cleaned up and covered with a bandage, a somber mood had overtooken him. Could the kid be  
right? Was he responsible for the current situation? _That girl is gonna die..and it'll be all my fault... _

"Andrew Maxwell?" He turned his head to the nurse who smiled at him. "You can see him now." The investigator couldn't believe it. That  
boy was alive? But he'd thought the acid would've reduced him to a pile of melted bones.

Shaking his head on the absurdity of all this, he walked in to see James, hooked up to a couple machines, with a couple X-Ray photos  
placed around the room. "It's amazing," said the nurse with a look of awe on her face. "Notice this X-Ray, it seems this boy possesses  
an exoskeleton twice as thick as the average adult male. Not only that..." She showed him another picture. "It appears that something  
is inside his body, a belt of sorts..."

Andrew took one glance and gasped. "This belt.." the X-Ray showed the inside of the boy's body...and embedded in his waist was  
the same belt he'd seen on Shinryu. "What's also incredible is how quickly his wounds have healed.." She waved her hand at the faint  
scars on his arms and cheek. "The scars should be gone within a week."

To say Andrew was surprised...would be a huge understatement. _Boy...Just what are you? _

James awoke as the nurse left the room. He took a moment to glance around. "Where..?" Then it hit him. "Sara!" He quickly pulled  
the wires off him but Maxwell grabbed his wrist. "Whoa! Hold it there, kid!"

The young man narrowed his eyebrows. "One, don't call me a kid, and second, take your hand off me or I'll knock every tooth out of  
your brain." The investigator immediately let go, ashamed of himself for his actions.

"Listen, uh, I just wanted to say...I'm sorry..for what I've done.." This made him glance up, surprised a man of the law was apologizing.  
"You were right, if I had just kept my trap shut, this mess wouldn't have occurred.."

James didn't say anything, just put on his clothes that were lying on the table and strolled right past him. "I just wish there was a way to  
make it up to you and your friend.." This made him stop, he tapped his chin a couple times. _Dang, I need a shave too._

"Hmm, maybe there is a way you can redeem yourself.." He turned toward the man in the fedora. "But we're gonna have to move fast."

Andrew nodded, grateful he could do something. "Right, but before we talk of a plan, you got a name?"

The young lad nodded as he sat in a nearby chair. "Yeah, name's James."

**Reservoir...**

The reservoir was where all the power for the city was generated. It was a massive construct with metal tubes and giant canisters  
connected along giant steel girders and power lines. The water could be heard roaring beneath the building. The Serpent Youkai  
stared around her, impressed.

"Hmph, I gotta hand it to you humans, despite how primitive you are, you've somehow managed to squeeze out a feeble existance  
for yourselves."

Sara turned her head in disqust. "Mock me all you want, but you'll lose that tone when Kamen Rider shows up and kicks your  
sorry butt to the next galaxy."

Her captor held her cheek and stared deeply into her bright eyes. "That's what I'm counting on, because your friend is weak and  
feeble, he's probaubly halfway out of town forgotten about you."

"Wrong, lizard-face!" The gal in question turned her head to see James, donned in his coat, walking toward her, a grim and serious  
look etched on his face. "I'm here, like you said, nobody with me, no weapons, nothing, now let her go!"

Serpent shook her head, "Not yet, first.." Her tail gave a flick as it straightened out, she grabbed it and, to the shock of those present,  
ripped it clean off and gave another flick, changing it into a long butcher knife-style sword, she tossed it into the ground next to the hero.  
"Cut yourself open and pull out that cursed belt!"

James stared at the blade's shiny surface, hesitating. The demon snarled. "It's either your life or the girl's! Which will it be?" To make sure  
she wasn't kidding, she stuck out her tongue and licked Sara's cheek, making her shudder in disqust.

The boy slowly put hia hand on the cold sword's hilt, only to turn his head up to the snake and shake no. "How about neither? Andrew!"

A loud gunshot could be heard from afar as the Youkai hissed angrily and gripped her hand, letting go of her captive and allowing her to  
slip away. Andrew stood in the window of a nearby building, a sniper rifle's muzzle smoking, he grinned. "Gotcha."

The poor snake demon, after dealing with the sting in her hand, turned her attention to the smirking lad right below her. "That was  
a dirty trick you pulled, boy." She leaped down off the perch she was on, grabbed the blade, and gave a twirl. "One I will gladly  
repay in kind!"

James though, would have none of it. "I don't think so, Drago!" "Yahoo!" Drago flew in and smacked the devil upside the head, causing  
her to recoil in surprise and pain. James allowed his friend to fuse to his belt. "Henshin!" In a flash of silver, he raced towards his foe, donned  
in his Kamen Rider armour, and delivered several swift punches into her torso before lifting up his leg and hitting her in the jaw.

The demon leapt away, growling. "Curse you!" She raced at him, sword lifted for an overhead swing. Shinryu leapt backwards to evade  
her attack as it crashed through the ground where he once stood. _Such power.._he thought to himself.

She swung at him again, making the Rider continue to leap backwards to avoid being chopped in two. He continued to dodge until he felt  
his back brush up against a wall. He ducked to evade the monster's destructive swing then came back with a underhanded punch to her  
chest...only for her to grab his fist.

He though, hauled off and hit her in the side of the waist with a boot. She simply huffed and lifted him into the air before launching him like  
a ragdoll up into the air. As he fell, the snake stabbed her blade up into the air, hoping to pierce him, but he swung his leg and kicked the  
blade away, allowing him to karate chop her on the head, dazing her temporarily and giving him the opportunity to lay into her with  
another round of jabs from his fists.

The snake growled. "Why won't you just give up and accept your fate?" She batted him away with one arm then tilted her head back  
before letting a ball of acid fly from her mouth. Shinryu rolled to the side, evading it. "I told you already!" he snapped furiously.

"I can't give up! Not when there's so many innocent people who need protecting from demons like you!" That insult did not fall on  
deaf ears for the Youkai increased the ferocity of her attacks, mixing in acid spits with swings from her tail-blade, it was much harder  
to dodge this time and before James knew it, the monster had dug her blade right into his shoulder plate.

"GAHH!" he cried in pain as he collapsed to one knee, gauntlets grasped around the blade, trying to shove it away. "Hang in there, Boss!" yelled Drago encouragingly.

James gnarled his teeth from behind his helmet. _It's no good, I'm losing consciousness already. _The pain was getting to him, his sight  
getting a little blurry. _I can't lose though, I gotta protect Sara and everyone else.._

Thunder Saber...James looked around. "Who said that?" _The power that brings both life and death..the power of thunder...summon it now..._

Drago glanced up at his friend. "..Boss? Are you talking to somebody?" The voice faded away but somehow, the young man felt like a lightbulb had  
gone on in his head.

Instead of answering, he moved his hand in front of the belt's core and muttered. "Thunder Saber." A bright glow came from the jewel as a handle  
emerged from the light, he grasped it and pulled it out, revealing a long broadsword. Its handle was a shiny bronze color with a silvery blade  
extending out and nestled in the hilt was a grey orb-like jewel.

The demon withdrew her weapon and stood back a few feet, eyes wide in shock at this latest development. Shinryu inspected his new weapon,  
giving it a flick, testing the weight. "Hmm, a sword...interesting.."

Drago's eye twitched. "..How did you do that?" James thought over it for a second then shrugged. "Eh, weird voice in my head telling me to do  
stuff, ya know, stuff you'd see in a RPG."

Serpent growled and readied her weapon. Drago asked. "Ya know how to use that?" James lifted it up. "Well, I've used a few plastic swords  
in my time, can't be much different than the real thing!"

The demon squatted her legs then leapt off the ground and into the air, blade raised over her head, she swung it downward. James only had  
seconds to raise his sword and block her attack with the flat side of the blade. The collision sent sparks spraying every which way. The force  
behind the attack made his feet dig into the ground.

With one big push he sent his foe backward, her own feet digging into the stone beneath her. Both fighters glared up at one another, then Shinryu  
launched himself toward her, their weapons met in a mighty clash, partially uplifting the ground around them.

The demon shoved hard, sending the warrior tumbling backward, she swung at him but he managed to sidestep out of the way. He rose his  
weapon only for her to swat it aside and kick him in the side, causing him to go off balance and tumble against the wall.

"Damn it," he cursed, "She's got way more experience than me..." He glanced at the cut on his shoulder, "If only this would heal up faster..."  
As if responding to his wish, the wound closed itself up and the armour sealed back together like new.

James blinked. "Ok, weird, but I'm not gonna complain." He turned to the Youkai who opened her mouth and let loose a big ball of acid. The  
Rider held his sword in front of him, sharp edge facing out and it cut the ball in two, causing the stuff to fly to both sides of him, leaving him  
safe.

The demon took a step back. "What?" Taking this chance, he raced forward and gave one big swing, the Youkai rose her weapon but the kid  
must've had luck on his side for his swing separated the fiend's hand holding the weapon. "AAGGHHH!"

She fell back, holding the stump where her hand use to be. "Damn you!" Instead of firing back a reply, James drove his weapon into her gut  
then pulled it out. The demon gasped and stumbled about, wounded but not finished.

"Still not dead?" teased James, holding his sword on his shoulder. "Boss, use some of my magic!" ordered Drago. "Magic? What mag-" Drago  
opened his mouth and spat out an orb of silver, it floated before Shinryu. "..Oh," He grabbed the orb and slotted it into the handle of sword, it  
caused the blade to start sparking, a silver glow gathering around it.

James felt the blade take on its own will as he thrust it into the air. "Thunder Dragon!" The blast shot into the air, as it reached a couple hundred  
feet, it morphed into a silvery serpentine dragon, its whole being composed of electrical currents. It roared before rocketing downward and  
slamming into the Saber.

Now it was brimming with the power of thunder. James hefted his sword. "You ready to meet your maker, demon?" The Serpent Youkai cried  
out in defiance. "You will pay for killing my mate! Even if it costs me my life!" She proceeded to race toward him one more time.

"Hmph, if you care that much about him, maybe you should go join him!" growled Drago in a hate-filled tone as Shinryu charged, yelling. "Thunder Strike!"

He swung his blade, cutting right through the demon, she froze in place as a look of realization came upon her, Death had come. James spun around and  
sliced through her again, finally ramming the blade into her torso, discharging all the electricity. He pulled out the blade and turned away from her, he  
looked over his shoulder. "..Rest In Peace..."

The demon then felt her strength leave her, but she smiled slightly. "...My love...I'm coming.." And with that, she fell back, exploding in a blast of silver,  
in the flames one could make out the symbol of Shinryu before it faded away.

With the fight done, The Rider's weapon dematerialized as he walked over to where his bike and Sara were, the latter leaning against the handlebars,  
breathing heavily. James walked over beside her. "You gonna be alright?"

"Y-Yeah.." Sara breathed in out while trying to get a clear look at her friend. "What...What happened?" Shinryu pat her on the shoulder. "No need to  
worry, that demon is history!"

Those words made Sara stop and do a double-take. "You idiot!" James' eye twitched. "What did you say?"

"You couldn't even wait for me to catch my breath, you just HAD to go and be the big hero!" James could hardly believe this."Wait, you're saying you  
actually wanted to see me beat up that Youkai?"

Sara rolled her eyes. "Well, duh! Only an idiot would not wanna see a super-cool armoured dude fight a monster from Planet X," She bopped him one  
in the chest. "And now because of you, I missed it!"

She took his bike by the handlebars, kick-started the engine, and drove off mumbling.

Kamen Rider just stood there, shaking his head. "Same old Sara." Maxwell walked up beside him, glancing awkwardly at the scene that just occurred.

"You do realize she just ran off with your bike?" Shinryu nodded. "Yep, but it's alright, she'll just get miffed for a while, go eat an ice cream bar and by  
tomorrow she'll drop it off at my front door, not knowing why she was so pissy,"

He turned to the detective. "I'm use to it by now," Maxwell nodded. "..Ok."

The two just stood there, watching Sara drive off aimlessly, then the detective asked. "Ya hungry?" "Starving." "Well, I knows this great place where they  
got all-you-can-pasta only a few blocks from here." "What are we doing standing around here for? Let's go!"

And together, they headed off to fill their bellies...

**Unknown...**

Standing on a nearby rooftop, watching the events that unfolded was a figure covered in shadows, the only thing you could make out  
was the glowing visor that was his eyes.

"Hmm, not bad for a kid," He talked into a wrist communicator. "Sir, I've located him, what are my orders?"

A male voice came over the communicator. "Excellent work, Commander, as for orders I simply want you to stand  
by and observe for now. When the time is right, we will make ourselves known to him."

"Understood, over and out." The figure shut off his communicator and took off across the rooftops.

Meanwhile, in a dimly lit office, a man obscured by shadows, gently put down his phone before laying back in his  
chair and breathing a content sigh. He reached over to a small table and took a sip from the wine glass perched on it.

"So...you've come at last...Shinryu..."

The man then turned to face the darkness which was then illuminated by lamps, showing a massive mural, etched on it  
were the image of two Chinese-Style dragons. One Red, the other Blue, intertwined.

And as he viewed the work of art, the man smiled...

**Kamen Rider Shinryu:**

**Next Episode: During a visit with an old coolege roommate, James recieves a message from Dr Thompson, a renowned scientist, asking for his help in escaping his  
captives. Setting off to the rescue, James and Drago learn of the Empire's plan to use the good doctor's blueprints to design a powerful weapon capable of causing  
mass destruction. Fighting the Mechanical Devil, Cyclocs, Shinryu struggles to protect the doctor and foil the Demon Lord's schemes. Go for it, Kamen Rider! Turn  
that hatred into a burning kick and crush the evil!**

**Next Time: Blueprints To Disaster**

Whoa, couple months since my last update but it was worth it I think. This chapter has a lot more in it than the first one so I hope you enjoyed it and I'll  
see you in the next chapter...whenever that comes out!

Oh yeah, Read and Review!...if you want!


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